e048 – Empowered Holistic Living with Mona Sharma

This week, in our very special series of episodes featuring our wonderful panel of speakers at our upcoming Boss Mama Retreat, we have my dear friend, Mona Sharma. For more information about how to join us in person for a beautiful day filled with joy and inspiration, check us out here.   As a celebrity wellness educator who recently appeared on Red Table Talk as Will Smith’s holistic nutritionist and mind/body coach, she is also the founder of XicamaTM, an innovative line of functional food and beverage products that deliver the gut- and immune-boosting benefits of the superfood, Jicama. Her early years were spent living in an ashram while learning about the power of food as medicine, yoga, and meditation to heal the body. After overcoming two heart surgeries, experiencing chronic anxiety, and burning out in the corporate world, she returned to her Ayurvedic roots and began her own healing journey, healing herself from the inside out. As a result, she takes a holistic view while partnering with functional medicine doctors to optimize each person’s unique constitution. In this episode, Mona and Sabrina chat about living a balanced, empowered, holistic lifestyle on a daily basis. Nobody can just jet off to Bali or go to an ashram for a month or two to recharge and rejuvenate themselves -- mind, body, and soul. But what we can do is implement the principles of “food is medicine,” “movement renews your energy,” and “meditation will heal your soul.” We are so often bombarded with messages of dieting, exercising, looking “fit,” looking “good,” but whose ideals are you living up to anyway? Moreover, as women, as moms, although the juggle is real between kids, a partner, your career and social life, and everything in between, how do we recharge our life, our minds, our souls, and our bodies?  We are responsible for the health of our families, but how can we ensure that we also take care of ourselves, without the guilt, without the shame, without the constant pressure of societal expectations? One of the ways we can do this is by nourishing our minds and bodies with delicious, nutrient-rich foods. Yes, mama, nobody likes to spend two hours in the kitchen meal prepping on the weekend, but taking the time to prep your meals and batch your recipes every weekend will get both you and your family into a routine (which is ahhhmazing especially when you have young wee ones who are always watching!). But more than that, imagine coming home to ready-to-cook or ready-to-eat food instead of scrambling at the last minute wondering, what on earth shall I make for dinner tonight? Or going on a hangry takeout dinner spree and ordering the sweet-salty-fried-processed food orchestra for you and your family.  Instead, prep your smoothie the night before with some quality fruits, veggies, healthy fats, and some protein sources for you and your kiddos. Have your list of non-negotiables every single morning - be it drinking a glass of warm water with some lemon, getting in 5 minutes of reflection/meditation, moving your body through some exercise and stretches for another 5-10 minutes… What are your pillars? Your kids and family will follow in your footsteps slowly but surely, but the trick is to create a routine of your non-negotiables, little eyes and ears are always watching and listening, even if you think they’re not. Healthy habits build a healthy mind, body, and soul.  Instead of overwhelming yourself with doing a 360-degree turn and shocking your system with a total habit change, how about implementing small changes daily into your life and making them a part of your routine? This is also known as habit stacking and helps with long term sustainability and will stop you from “falling off the wagon” and instead, help you embody and truly live a holistic lifestyle. This will also help you balance and manage the emotions that co...